8+ years in technical leadership in embedded engineering, professional services, or customer-facing roles
In-depth knowledge of AI/ML, data science, and cybersecurity
Experience in building customer-embedded engineering teams
Strong skills in defining engagement models and delivery methodologies
Proven success in partnering with Sales for account expansion
Excellent executive-level communication and relationship management
Experience in managing collaboration across engineering, security, and data science
Responsibilities
Lead and scale the Forward Deployed AI Engineering team across customer-embedded engineering and AI & Data Science
Own the team's mandate to embed in strategic customers to uncover problems and develop solutions
Define engagement models and scoping frameworks for FDE work
Ensure cross-customer intelligence is translated into actionable tools for the SE&A team
Collaborate with Sales to identify strategic customer accounts for engagement
Partner with SE&A and Rapid Deployment teams for solution integration
Act as an executive presence during customer account reviews and roadmap definition
Evaluate new technologies to enhance team output and customer results
Hire and develop engineering talents in both FDE and AI & DS functions
Report on team health, account coverage, and solution impacts to the VP of Forward Deployed Engineering
Benefits
Work with cutting-edge AI-driven cybersecurity technologies
Collaborate with a talented and innovative team
Culture focused on growth and professional development
Opportunities for expertise expansion in AI, cybersecurity, and engineering
Ability to shape and define a new engineering function in a greenfield opportunity
Full Job Description
About the Role
As Director of Forward Deployed AI Engineering, you lead the most innovative team in the TENEX FDE organization - a dual-function group of customer-embedded engineers and AI & Data Scientists working to solve hard problems and build solutions that scale. You will define how the team engages with customers, how solutions are built and productized, and how AI-native tooling accelerates the work.
Job Responsibilities
Lead and scale the Forward Deployed AI Engineering team across its two functions: customer-embedded engineering and AI & Data Science
Own the team's mandate: embed in strategic customer accounts to discover problems, build high-grade solutions, and produce cross-customer intelligence that elevates the entire platform
Define the engagement model for FDE work - how engineers are assigned to accounts, how engagements are scoped, and how solutions are documented and productized
Oversee the AI & Data Science function - ensuring cross-customer telemetry, threat intelligence, and detection optimization work is translated into tools that the SE&A team can operate
Partner with Sales to identify strategic accounts that are candidates for FDE engagement
Partner with the SE&A and Rapid Deployment teams to ensure FDE-built solutions flow back into the broader delivery model
Serve as an executive-level presence with strategic customers - participating in account reviews and helping define the roadmap for embedded engagements
Evaluate new AI technologies, data science tooling, and engineering approaches that can improve team output and customer outcomes
Hire, develop, and retain engineers across both the FDE and AI & DS functions
Report to VP of Forward Deployed Engineering on team health, account coverage, and solution impact
Required Skills & Qualifications Technical & Industry Expertise
8+ years in technical leadership with experience in embedded engineering, professional services, or customer-facing technical roles
Deep understanding of AI/ML, data science, and cybersecurity domains
Experience building teams that work in a customer-embedded or problem-first engineering model
Strong ability to define engagement models, scoping frameworks, and delivery methodologies
Proven track record partnering with Sales on strategic account identification and expansion
Executive-level communication and customer relationship management skills
Experience managing cross-functional collaboration across engineering, security, and data science
Soft Skills
Strong problem-solving and troubleshooting skills with a bias toward action
Excellent customer-facing communication and collaboration abilities
Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-performance startup environment
Passion for cybersecurity, automation, and continuous improvement
Education & Certifications
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Cybersecurity, Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent practical experience)
Relevant certifications such as CISSP, CISM, GIAC certifications, Google Cloud Professional, Microsoft SC-200/AZ-500, or AWS Certified Solutions Architect are a plus
Why Join Us?
Opportunity to work with cutting-edge AI-driven cybersecurity technologies and next-generation security platforms
Collaborate with a talented and innovative team focused on continuously improving security operations
Competitive salary and benefits package
A culture of growth and development, with opportunities to expand your expertise in AI, cybersecurity, and engineering
Be part of building something new - TENEX's Forward Deployed Engineering organization is a greenfield opportunity to define how enterprise security is delivered at scale
